Giants 2024 position analysis: Malik Nabers brings a new level of explosiveness to the wide receiver group

Heading into the 2024 season, the Giants are coming off a disappointing 6-11 season, trying to bounce back on the team that won a playoff game in Minnesota two years ago.

In this series, we will break down the depth chart for each position group. This time, we’ll delve deeper into the wide receiver position…

Projected Depth Chart

Appetizer: Malik Nabers, Dario Slayton, Wan’Dale Robinson (slot)

Backups: Jalin Hyatt, Isaiah Hodgins, Allen Robinson, Isaiah McKenzie, Gunner Olszewski, MIles Boykin, Bryce Ford-Wheaton

Main additions/losses: Drafted Nabers in the first round, signed Robinson, Paris Campbell signed with the Eagles

Best performance in 2023: Slayton, who had 50 receptions for 770 yards and four touchdowns

What the Giants receivers have going for them

Since Odell Beckham Jr. After leaving after the 2018 season, the Giants didn’t have a true No. 1 receiver. That’s a term that gets debated a lot about what it actually means, but you know one when you see one.

Over the past five seasons, Slayton has led the team in receiving yards five times, and the ultra-disappointing Kenny Golladay led the team once. While Slayton is a quality player who had a good career with the Giants, he is not a true No. 1 receiver and really shouldn’t be any team’s leader in yards.

The good news for the Giants is that shouldn’t be the case in 2024.

Enter Nabers, an absolute athletic specimen at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds. The Giants remained at No. 6 in the draft and took Nabers (from the same school as Beckham), who was supposed to be the club’s best receiver from the first day of training camp.

The potential starting group of Nabers, Slayton and Wan’Dale Robinson may not be Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, It is Steve Smith yet, but the group has the potential to present excellent numbers, as everyone must complement each other’s skills on the field.

Top concern for 2024: Will the running game keep teams honest?

When Daniel Jones and the Giants offense takes the field in 2024, there will be no Saquon Barkley in the defense field. Sure, Barkley had injury problems, but there’s no denying that teams often needed to have an extra man or two in the box at all times to try to prevent Barkley from getting loose on one of his patented big runs.

Single Devin is the Giants’ new No. 1 defensive back, and while he’s had a decent career so far, he’s not the same explosive runner that Barkley is. So the question is whether or not the Giants will be able to run the ball effectively enough to keep opposing defenses honest. If they can’t and the offense becomes one-dimensional, teams will use coverage-heavy looks to try to slow down the passing game.

As good as this receiving group is, it won’t matter much if the Giants can’t establish a running offense to even things out.

Player who should rise in 2024: Hyatt

The Giants drafted Hyatt in the third round of last year’s draft to be the receiver he was at Tennessee. And while he showed flashes of that, averaging 16.2 yards per reception as a rookie, he only had 23 total receptions and never found the end zone.

In a perfect world, the Giants would probably like to see Hyatt become a starting player, where he could potentially replace Slayton in the starting lineup at some point in the future.

The biggest camp battle: Hyatt vs.

Slayton is the established veteran of the group at age 27 and has broken the 700-yard mark four times in five seasons. But as Hyatt enters his age-23 season, he has a chance to be an even better deep ball threat than Slayton. So when camp begins, it will be worth watching to see if Hyatt can make the starting group.

General outlook for 2024

On paper, this is the best Giants receiver depth chart in years. They have a young, do-it-all playmaker in Nabers who could quickly rise to stardom. They have a proven veteran in Slayton and a rising young prospect in Hyatt who can stretch the field, and they have a crafty receiver in Robinson who is excellent with the ball in his hands.

Health is obviously an important factor, as is the offensive line’s ability to protect Jones. If Jones doesn’t have time to throw, then it doesn’t matter how talented his receivers are.

But if you’re a Giants fan, you’re probably excited to see this group take the field in what could be the Giants’ next great trio of players.